Indians Prospect Insider

The Winter Meetings have officially ended! Who came out on top? In this MLB News and Notes segment, the IBI's Andrew Zajac will be giving occasional reports on the latest news and rumors throughout the MLB. Today's piece focuses on Matt Kemp heading to San Diego, Yoenis Cespedes landing in Detroit, Matt Latos being traded to the Marlins, and more!

The Winter Meetings are over. All of the teams have checked out of their hotel rooms, boarded their flights and disbanded to all of their home cities across the country. But what a wild final 24-48 hours it was. The IBI's Tony Lastoria notes the Indians silence during all of that activity and explains why they don't have a lot of needs, what they may do going forward, talks about the Rule 5 Draft results and more.

The annual Rule 5 Draft is today at 12pm ET and will signal the unofficial end of the winter meetings in San Diego. The Indians have a full 40-man roster so will not select anyone, but they have a few players who might get selected in the Major League phase. The IBI's Tony Lastoria provides all the last minute details on the draft and will update the picks as they happen (or don't).

The Rule 5 draft takes place today, and while no Cleveland player is guaranteed to be drafted, the name on people’s lips is Giovanni Soto. The left-hander got one more chance to show other teams what he can do Wednesday night, making another start down in Puerto Rico. Join Jim Piascik as he recaps Soto’s start and the rest of the action from across the globe as he takes you Around the Farm.

The Dodgers stole the show at the Winter Meetings on Wednesday with a series of moves to change the makeup of their roster by making three trades and one free agent signing. The net result was a new rotation member and All Star keystone combination. The IBI's Tony Lastoria recaps their big day and all the other signings, trades and rumors from San Diego.

Things were much busier in San Diego on Wednesday at the winter meetings (and the day is still not over) as Jon Lester’s deal with the Cubs got things kick started again with signings, trades and rumors. The Indians have not made any moves since the Brandon Moss pickup on Monday, but the IBI's Tony Lastoria notes that their name popped up in a few interesting rumors, two of which for outfielder Alex Rios and lefty starter Brett Anderson.

The Rule 5 Draft commences on Thursday afternoon in San Diego at the tail end of the Winter Meetings. What kind of players are typically drafted and what levels do they come from? What positions are the primary focus of the draft and what positions rarely get selected? The IBI's Jeff Ellis chimes in with his yearly Rule 5 Draft review where he analyzes all that and more...

The winter ball season continued on Tuesday as several Indians players were in action out in the various Caribbean leagues. The IBI's Arthur Kinney recaps the night from Indians players such as Anthony Gallas, Roberto Perez, Audy Ciriaco and others.

There were a few free agents signings and a few notable trades on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings in San Diego. The IBI''s Tony Lastoria recaps all the news and notes from a relatively quiet day around winter ball. He provides updates on several notable free agent signs, a few trades and all of the other news of the day.

The news was much quieter on the free agent and trade front on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings as it seems like a lot of the industry is in a holding pattern waiting for Jon Lester to make a decision. Once he signs, the flood gates could open as so many held up free agent deals and trades could be unleashed. The Indians were not involved in any news or rumors on Tuesday, but the IBI's Tony Lastoria notes some rumors from other teams that the Indians could end up getting more involved in among other things.

As the hot stove season heats up, it seems the Cleveland player eliciting the most decisive opinions is Jose Ramirez. Which raises the question: just what does Cleveland have in Jose Ramirez? Join Jim Piascik as he looks at what Ramirez has done as a major leaguer already, what he could be in the future, and whether or not trading him away this offseason makes sense for the organization.

When the deal for Brandon Moss first started to break almost a week ago the IBI's Jeff Ellis half joked that most of the fans would hate the deal for a myriad of reasons: he is hurt, he has a low average and he isn’t a right-handed bat. Even when it is clearly an excellent addition at a low price, some people don't like it. In his latest, he does his best to convince some of the naysayers that he is a good fit with little given up to acquire him.

There were only two games played throughout winter ball on Monday. Perhaps everyone scheduled an off day in order to keep up with all of the Hot Stove action going on at the Winter Meetings in San Diego. In any case, the IBI's Tony Lastoria checks in on an old friend Roman Pena and also provides an update on how Anthony Gallas and Jesus Aguilar did on Monday.

The Winter Meetings are underway and the Hot Stove is heating up! In this MLB News and Notes segment, the IBI's Andrew Zajac will be giving occasional reports on the latest news and rumors throughout the MLB. Today's piece focuses on a trade that would bring Jeff Samardzija to the A.L. Central, the sweepstakes for Jon Lester is heading towards a close, the Cubs discussing a trade for Miguel Montero, and more.

Day one of the 2014 Winter Meetings in San Diego is almost in the books, but the big news of the day has come out of Oakland and Cleveland as they finally put the finishing touches on the Brandon Moss deal. The IBI's Tony Lastoria takes a deep look at Moss looking at his power, defense, injury, roster fit and much more, plus he gives other thoughts on who might go now that Moss has been added. He also provides all the Indians related rumors from the day...

As the Winter Meetings get cranked up today, the Indians sit in a good spot as an organization. Like every team they have holes on the roster they would like to fill and they will explore with tinkering with their roster, but the IBI's Tony Lastoria notes that they have a lot of roster flexibility and control that puts them in a good spot this offseason. He also breaks down the incredible amount of depth they have created, runs down the list of notable Winter Meetings moments in the past for the Indians and more.

For those who have noticed, Jose Ramirez has not played since November 29th. Some have wondered if he is hurt or if he has been held out of action the past week because he might be in trade talks with Oakland. The IBI's Tony Lastoria provides an update on his whereabouts, notes the return of a big Indians prospect and more...

The annual Baseball Winter Meetings kicked off on Sunday. Well, everyone simply arrived in San Diego on Sunday and all of the true wheeling and dealing is expected to begin on Monday. The IBI's Tony Lastoria recaps the news and notes from the day as well as some momentum potentially being gained in a Kemp deal to an American League team.

The WAR Room is back again, bringing you the 2014 advanced stats for every Cleveland minor leaguer. With the minor league seasons at an end and the seasons in review finished, The WAR Room moves to ranking the top-100 prospects in 2014 based on performance. But instead of just listing based on pure performance, there is a twist to make the rankings more relevant. Join Jim Piascik as he brings you part one, including a player recently lost to the Phillies in Elvis Araujo, a speedy outfielder in Silento Sayles, and much more as he takes you into The WAR Room.

Available IBI Books

The 2014 Cleveland Indians Baseball Insider book featuring the Indians' Top 100 Prospects and more is now available. Also, previous editions from 2008-2012 are also available at a discounted rate. Just click on the book image for more information. Thanks again for all the support!